Round 17 · 2021

Circuit of the Americas

Austin, USA · October 24, 2021 · Circuit History · Wikipedia

Kings of this circuit
The race, in perspective

Race debrief

What did we expect after qualifying—and who beat it?

R172021
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20 stored results 20/20 Elo snapshots 20/20 numbered grid slots 0/20 qualifying results
Elo × qualifying → race result

Did they beat the expectation?

A strong driver recovering from a poor qualifying position isn't automatically a surprise. This model estimates a finish from both inputs, then compares it with what happened.

Experimental · v1

Expected finish assumes a classified finish. DNFs stay in the full grid but receive no performance verdict. Qualifying is not the starting grid; grid differences are flagged, not silently substituted.

Fit on 639 earlier finishes across 37 races, 2011–2021. No results from this race enter its expectation.

0/20 entrants have an estimate. Missing Elo or qualifying stays visible below; a grid position is not used as a qualifying result.

Top 3

Beat the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

Flop 3

Below the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

0/20 entrants assessed. Up to three per side, ranked by expected minus actual finish. DNFs, missing estimates and gaps rounding to 0.0 are excluded. “Flop” means below the model's estimate—not poor driving. A ranked gap can still be inside the usual error range.

Full grid: pre-race Elo rank, qualifying position, estimated finish, actual result and difference from expectation. Positive differences mean finishing ahead of the estimate.
DriverPre-race EloQualifyingExpectedResultP1 ← position → P20vs expectedReading
M. VerstappenRed Bull #22382 No error range P1 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
L. HamiltonMercedes #12536 No error range P2 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
S. PérezRed Bull #72267 No error range P3 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
C. LeclercFerrari #82256 No error range P4 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
D. RicciardoMcLaren #62296 No error range P5 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
V. BottasMercedes #32378 No error range P6 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
C. SainzFerrari #42344 No error range P7 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
L. NorrisMcLaren #52317 No error range P8 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
Y. TsunodaAlphaTauri #171993 No error range P9 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
S. VettelAston Martin #152054 No error range P10 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. GiovinazziAlfa Romeo #162034 No error range P11 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
L. StrollAston Martin #122118 No error range P12 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
K. RäikkönenAlfa Romeo #142064 No error range P13 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
G. RussellWilliams #132083 No error range P14 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
N. LatifiWilliams #181954 No error range P15 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. SchumacherHaas F1 Team #191868 No error range P16 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
N. MazepinHaas F1 Team #201830 No error range P17 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
F. AlonsoAlpine F1 Team #102190 No error range DNFRear wing Not assessedQualifying unavailable
E. OconAlpine F1 Team #112162 No error range DNFMechanical Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. GaslyAlphaTauri #92201 No error range DNFSuspension Not assessedQualifying unavailable
How useful is the model? See the historical check

Average absolute error on 639 classified finishes in 37 earlier races within the last ten years. Each race was held out and predicted using only older races; all three models use the same samples.

Elo + qualifying
2.20places
Qualifying only
2.43places
Elo only
2.69places

The range scales the 80th percentile of earlier held-out absolute errors to this field size, rounding outward. It is an empirical error guide, not a guaranteed 80% chance for a particular driver. We require at least five checked races and 100 checked finishes before showing it.

Inputs are field-normalised Elo rank and qualifying position. The target is position among all race entries, trained only on classified finishers. Estimates are averages, not a unique predicted finishing order. Penalties, the circuit, weather, incidents and strategy aren't model inputs. Historical qualifying coverage is patchy; this is an exploratory backtest on corrected records, not proof of live forecasting accuracy.

The rating ledger

What changed in Elo?

These are actual rating changes. The expectation model above does not change Elo or fantasy scoring.

Largest Elo gain

Tsunoda+32.2 Elo

Largest Elo loss

Gasly−61.9 Elo

Largest grid-to-finish gain

Vettel+8 places

The bigger picture

Championship after this round

Top five in the stored standings. Points include sprint results where applicable.

  1. 1 Verstappen 287.5pts 0
  2. 2 Hamilton 275.5pts 0
  3. 3 Bottas 185pts 0
  4. 4 Pérez 150pts +1
  5. 5 Norris 149pts −1

Movement since round 16. A dash means the earlier standing is unavailable.

Explore the season →
Across the garage

Teammate results

Two-driver constructor entries from this race. A result comparison, not an adjustment for strategy or reliability.

What this analysis can—and cannot—tell you

This debrief is calculated from stored results and rating snapshots. The experimental expectation model learns from earlier races only, using Elo rank and qualifying together; it never feeds back into Elo. It is not a separately reviewed race report.

Elo uses the result order, including retirements. It does not isolate driver skill from the car, reliability, penalties or strategy. Elo seed comparisons use pre-race ratings, never today's ratings. Equal ratings share the midpoint of their rank range (for example, tied first and second become seed 1.5).

Grid gains use numbered starting slots and classified finishes only. Zero or missing grid values are excluded; a position gained is not necessarily an overtake. Qualifying gaps use the latest segment both teammates have a valid time for, never Q1 against Q3.

Lap-by-lap pace, tyre stints, pit-stop execution and safety-car effects are not available in this report. Missing data is omitted, not inferred.

Read the Elo methodology →
20
Result Entries
Avg Elo
Highest Elo (Hamilton)
3
Non-finishes

Race

Qualifying

# Driver Grid +/- Points Season Pts Season # Elo Change Elo
P1 🇳🇱 M.Verstappen 1 +25 287.5 P1 +28.9 2,411
P2 🇬🇧 L.Hamilton 2 +19 275.5 P2 +8.3 2,544
P3 🇲🇽 S.Pérez 3 +15 150 P4 +31.2 2,298
P4 🇲🇨 C.Leclerc 4 +12 128 P6 +26.7 2,283
P5 🇦🇺 D.Ricciardo 6 +1 +10 105 P8 +15.5 2,311
P6 🇫🇮 V.Bottas 9 +3 +8 185 P3 -0.6 2,377
P7 🇪🇸 C.Sainz 5 -2 +6 122.5 P7 -2.7 2,342
P8 🇬🇧 L.Norris 7 -1 +4 149 P5 -5.3 2,311
P9 🇯🇵 Y.Tsunoda 10 +1 +2 20 P14 +32.2 2,025
P10 🇩🇪 S.Vettel 18 +8 +1 36 P12 +18.5 2,072
P11 🇮🇹 A.Giovinazzi 12 +1 0 1 P18 +15.1 2,049
P12 🇨🇦 L.Stroll 13 +1 0 26 P13 -2.2 2,115
P13 🇫🇮 K.Räikkönen 15 +2 0 6 P17 -0.9 2,063
P14 🇬🇧 G.Russell 20 +6 0 16 P15 -9.5 2,074
P15 🇨🇦 N.Latifi 14 -1 0 7 P16 +0.7 1,955
P16 🇩🇪 M.Schumacher 16 0 0 P19 +3.7 1,872
P17 🇷🇺 N.Mazepin 17 0 0 P21 +1.0 1,831
DNF 🇪🇸 F.Alonso 19 0 58 P10 -48.3 2,142
DNF 🇫🇷 E.Ocon 11 0 46 P11 -50.4 2,112
DNF 🇫🇷 P.Gasly 8 0 74 P9 -61.9 2,140

Qualifying results are not available for this race.

Elo Changes